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Success Stories

Over the last 16 years of working for environmental consulting firms, Dr. Srini Neralla, Ph.D., nurtured a dream, to start and build his own environmental engineering and consulting firm. During that time, he continued to learn and develop management & leadership skills and became a strong believer in entrepreneurship. And finally, in 2012 he started SIA Solutions, LLC, turning his dream into reality. Today, SIA Solutions is a successful company on a rapid growth path. Dr. Neralla gratefully attributes the success to the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) and its 8(a) program.

As a testament to the company's growth, SIA has been able to expand both geographically and in services. Without SBA assistance, it is extremely difficult for startups and small companies to penetrate the federal sector, where there are many well established large companies with tremendous resources. Dr. Neralla considers it an honor for SIA to provide services to the U.S. Department of... Read More

How do you top excellence? One Houston restaurant has already defeated the odds, and grown to be the premiere small business that could! Peli Peli, has exceeded critic’s expectations and has grown to be a brand to reckon with throughout Southeast Texas! In 2005, entrepreneurs Thomas Nguyen and Michael Tran set out to create something unique for the Houston restaurant industry, not by surprise, yet with a big bang! And using help from the U.S. Small Business Administration they were able to do just that!

The two foodie-capitalists were seeking an opportunity to create a restaurant concept that would create flavors no one had ever had before. What they discovered was Chef Paul Friedman whom had moved to Houston in the early eighties and had applied his culinary skills into several different restaurant concepts. What they achieved is what Houston lacked; a unique taste and appreciation for the diverse flavors of South African cuisine. In 2009, the concept was born: to be the... Read More

“What I like most about owning a small business is having the ability to make quick decisions and to adapt quickly to new market conditions,” according to Maher Touma, CEO, CECA Supply & Services, Inc. The successful U.S. drilling export service was established in Houston, Texas in May 2002 and has seen exponential growth thanks to various programs available from the U.S. Small Business Administration.

While a lot of new small businesses benefit from the 7(a) guaranteed loan program, in order to grow their business globally, assistance needed doesn’t end there. “We have used the SBA Export Working Capital program to help with expanding our services to other countries such as Algeria, Tunisia and Libya.” said CECA President, Rami Touma. “We have been able to order and provide supply-on-demand in the Oil and Gas industry overseas while managing a steady growth in a little over 12 years.”

Starting as a simple concept export business in 2002, CECA Supply &... Read More

Networking and collaboration are instrumental to success in the growth and development of every small business. This is the experience of a well-established firm such as Lacey Newday Consulting, LLC (LNC) located in Houston, Texas. And with assistance from the U.S. Small Business Administration’s 8(a) program, Sidney Lacey, LNC principal/director, has expanded his services leading to growth since the firm opened over 10 years ago.

“When I started LNC, I knew that I wanted it to be a place where passion, performance and integrity were paramount. A firm where the clients were asking, ‘why are you guys trying to leave, we need help on something else.’ When I worked for someone else, that’s how we ran our practice and not only did it satisfy the customer, but it made work fun!” said Sidney.

Diversification is also attributed to LNC’s success over the years. The firm assists clients with project management, process improvement, internal controls analysis, staff... Read More